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Monday, February 22, 2016

India as a Coding Nation

We all have seen how the number of computer programmers in India has grown in the las few years. What people don't know is that this is not a coincidence, but the result of well defined strategies used by the Indian Government, by companies and by NGOs from India.

Last week I saw some news about a US 4 smartphone launched in India, named Freedom 251. I haven't believed at first, but then I read more about it and found out all this is all part of a project to make the acquisition of electronic gadgets easier for Indians, as part of a government effort, helped by private companies, to create an appropriate environment in that country for the development of programming skills among the population.

Yesterday I visited the site http://www.snoopcode.com/ (follow them at Twitter here) which is, independently, part of the same effort. This website teaches people how to write code in HTML, CSS, Javascript and jQuery, which is a pretty good start for a front-end development career. This website has a very interesting pilot project.

Computer programming is a interesting career. We wouldn't be here, writing or reading this blog, if it wasn't so. With a few device like a desktop or notebook computer, a smartphone and other small things one can really create a valuable piece of software. And while most of us are still working hard to make ends meet every month, some people are rich writing code!

An effort like this may represent a lot of money for a country and its people, as well as a growth of self-esteem for a large number of people. One may go from unemployment to a job position or even to an entrepreneur position.

I would really love that Brazilian government could engage in a similar effort. Unfortunately all we have in this country is a left-wing government dedicated to destroy private companies by raising taxes in order to give money to those who don't want to work. Here in Brazil government believes in "social programs", not in computer programs. I believe, as Ronald Reagan would say, that the best social program is a job.

So, I urge those who can help this kind of initiatives to do it. Our world is living a serious crisis. We may just wait for things to go better or we may just wait for governments to fix things. But we may also WORD HARD and help people to find their ways to a good job and a good living for themselves and for their families. This is much better than donating money.